Welcome to Thoughts from the Road. Here’s a short column from Andy on dealing with dodgy police stops in Africa…
Thoughts From the Road is a corner on Mad or Nomad for motorcycle travellers to share short stories from their experiences travelling the world. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments and join the discussion.
By Andy Davidson
Mad or Nomad - RTW motorcycle travellers
Andy and Alissa are Mad or Nomad. Together they’ve been riding around the world since 1st January 2018 and run the Mad or Nomad website.
Before their world trip, Andy had been travelling on bikes since he was 17 and took on a number of big trips – including a solo ride at 23 from the UK to Iraq.
He worked as a motorcycle journalist for MCN in the UK for six years before leaving to ride the world indefinitely with Alissa.
You can find out more about their adventures here:
Dodgy Police Stops in Africa
We were stopped by the police in Zambia today and accused of speeding.
We weren’t.
We’ve been stopped more than a hundred times across Africa, and almost every encounter has been friendly. Zambia especially — dozens of stops, all professional and polite. So don’t let this story put you off.
Two different overlanding friends had messaged us to say they’d been bribed on the stretch from Lusaka to Malawi for speeding. So we were already on the lookout…
The stop
We spotted a police car parked far in the distance and slowed right down. On the opposite verge, a speed gun pointed in the direction we were heading – not the direction we were coming from. We crawled past the camera at under 40kph. Passed the car and the camera and stayed slow.
Moments later, the police car raced up behind us, overtook, and disappeared ahead. We knew what was coming next.
A few minutes later we took a bend and there he was, waiting — hand raised, pulling us over.
The confrontation
From the start, he was aggressive and immediately started shouting, quickly demanding our demanding passports and licences.
Red flag.
We asked what speed we were doing. Silence.
We asked the speed limit. Silence.
He ignored everything and shouted for our passports – that’s all he wanted.
Alissa cut in: “No. You’re not having them. Show us proof first and tell us what speed we were going.”
We knew our speed. Anything above 40kph would be a lie.
He got angry and started shouting for our documents. We remained calm but firm. “Listen, you’re not having our documents. Tell us what speed we were going or show us proof”.
We knew if we handed over the documents, that’s when we were going to get bribed.
He spotted our helmet camera, retreated to his car, and tried a divide-and-conquer tactic — calling me over alone. When I neared his window he demanded I switch off the camera and hand over the passports. The camera was already off and on my helmet, which was on the bike. I wasn’t having any of it, so I walked back to Alissa.
Intimidation wasn’t working. He ordered us to follow him back to the speed trap – probably for his colleagues to have a go. He was calling our bluff.
No problem! Let’s go.
The resolution
At the checkpoint, four other officers sat waiting. His boss approached — calmer, professional. He asked where we were headed.
Before he could say another word, we matched his tone and got stuck in. We told him how much we love Zambia, how every police encounter has been friendly, and how it would be a shame to spoil that reputation today.
And before he could respond…
“We know you’re out here catching speeders. But we weren’t speeding. There must be a mistake, but that’s okay, we’re happy to wait while you check the camera.”
He paused. Then: “Okay, today I will use my discretion because you said nice things about our police. Have a good day.”
Our thoughts…
Don’t hand over your passport if something feels off — carry laminated colour copies instead. We were confident that if we handed him our documents we would be asked for money – we knew we weren’t speeding – the limit was 60kph, he couldn’t tell us how fast we were going or what the limit was. It all felt off.
If a “ticket” price changes from an astronomical figure to a much lower one because they’re now willing to “help you out”, it’s a bribe. Don’t pay.
If there’s no receipt, it’s a bribe. Don’t pay.
Stay calm under pressure. Aggression is designed to provoke panic. Keep cool and avoid giving them leverage.
Be friendly, but don’t be a pushover. Intimidation only works if you let it. If you know you’re in the right, stand your ground.
Have a read of our article on how to deal with bribes and let us know what you think in the comments below.
Andy Davidson
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Share your thoughts in the comments below…
I always carry on my travels a false card with the least ID of the country I am visiting, and some expired cards, and expired documents.
TRANSLATED FROM:
sempre carrego em minhas viagens uma carteira falsa com a menor cedula do pais que estou visitando,e alguns cartões vencidos ,e documentos vencidos.
Great tip Reinaldo, we also have a fake wallet with old licences, a few expired cards and a couple of very very small bills.
Thanks for reading!
Cheers,
Andy